Speaking from ear to ear, the Duchess of Cambridge could barely contain her joy after being given a chance to nurse a baby rhino and an elephant calf at an animal sanctuary in India today.
Kate and William had fun playing the parents of a group of vulnerable animals who are being brought back to health after being injured or orphaned in the wild.
But Kate admitted that she was ‘terribly missing’ after a four-day absence, adding that Prince George was ‘too naughty’ to bring along on the trip as the two-year-old ‘would be running all over the place.
She also said the little girls dancing around the village reminded her of 11-month-old Princess Charlotte and told the elders: ‘Next time we come, we’ll definitely bring them along.’
The Duchess of Cambridge laughs as she feeds a baby elephant at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation in Kaziranga.
Animal doctor: Kate nurses a baby elephant back to health at a sanctuary helping animals who have been injured, displaced or orphaned.
Kate also fed a baby rhino at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation in Kaziranga, in the state of Assam.
A baby rhino gives Kate the runaround at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation at Panbari reserve forest in Kaziranga.
Emergency care: Prince William also tries his hand at feeding the calves, using a special bottle to give them milk or formula.
The sanctuary provides emergency care and rehabilitation to wild animals that have been injured, displaced, or orphaned in the wild.
Armed with large bottles of milk, the couple feeds hungry elephants during a trip to a sanctuary in Kaziranga National Park in Assam.
The calves were clearly impatient to get their meals and bellowed when they first saw the rangers reach for the flasks.
The Duke and Duchess were visiting Kaziranga National Park, home to elephants, water buffalo, endangered swamp deer, tigers and two-thirds of the world’s population of Indian one-horned rhinos.
The park in the northeastern Indian state of Assam is a unique combination of grasslands, wetlands and forests and covers over 800,000 square kilometres and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
William, a passionate conservationist, and Kate were introduced to the young animals at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC).
It provides emergency care and rehabilitation to injured, displaced or orphaned wildlife.
In an open grassland and open forest area, the cubs had gathered under the shade of trees waiting for the royal couple to come their way.
The maternal instincts of the Cambridges – who left their two children at home before embarking on a tour of India – came to the fore during the encounter.
The Duke and Duchess decorate an elephant parade statue on a visit to the Mark Shand Foundation at Kaziranga National Park.
A cracking time was had by all: The Duke of Cambridge breaks a coconut on a rock (left) while Kate walks with the CEO of Elephant Family Ruth Powys (right) during a visit to the Mark Shand Foundation at Kaziranga National Park.
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